At the beginning of the 16th century, Pedro Martir described tapir as: “the size of a bull, with the trunk of an elephant and with the hoofs of a horse”. In fact, this animal in appearance is an amazing mixture: at the same time it looks like a pig, pony or rhino with a trunk similar to an elephant's one, although shorter. In this article, we will talk in more detail about this interesting animal, which causes emotion for many.
Habitat
Tapir is a genus of large mammals belonging to the order of artiodactyls, allocated to the tapir family. In the language of one tribe of Brazil, the name of these animals means "fat", which directly refers to their skin.
Tapir is an animal that lives in Southeast Asia and Latin America. There, animals inhabit shrubs and swamp forests along the banks of lakes and rivers. Modern species are the remains of a once large group whose range extended to the Northern Hemisphere as a whole. In America, these wild representatives of artiodactyls are the only ones.
Appearance
Over the past 30 million years, the appearance of tapir has not changed. Today, plain tapir is very similar to its ancient ancestors. Something like a horse, something like a rhino. At the tapir on the hind (three-fingered) and front (four-fingered) legs, the hooves are almost equine (they are even similar with microscopic details). On the legs there are corns located below the elbow joint, which are similar to horse chestnuts. The American tapir has a small mane on its neck. The upper lip, which is more mobile than the horse, is extended into the proboscis. Animals are born in the outfit in which, apparently, the ancestors of various animals walked around: intermittent light stripes stretch from tail to head against the dark background of their skins. In the same way, "painted" and legs.
Tapirs are densely built animals with a stocky body, which is covered with thick, short, usually black or brown hair. The height of the male at the withers is on average 1.2 m, the length is 1.8 m, and the total weight is up to 275 kg. The muzzle, including the tapir’s nose and upper lip, is extended into a small movable proboscis, which is used to cut off young shoots or leaves. Eyes are small, rounded ears stick out to the sides. The legs are short, the hind legs are three-fingered, the front legs are four-fingered, while the axis of the limb in both cases passes through the 3rd finger, which takes on the main load. Each finger ends with a small hoof. The tail is short, as if chopped off.
This is a fairly powerful animal, in honor of which the new ZIL Tapir was named. By the way, the car received a fairly elongated face that resembles the appearance of an animal.
Nutrition
Tapir is an animal that feeds on the leaves of forest shrubs and aquatic plants. Tapirs perfectly dive, swim, can stay under water for a very long time, and in case of danger they always look for salvation in it.
Black tapir is a secretive nocturnal animal that prefers to hide in dense rain forests. There are seasonal migrations - during the dry season, they occur in lowlands, while in the rainy season - and in mountainous areas. For example, in Sumatra, animals were observed at heights of up to 1,500 m in the mountains. Migration can also be associated with deteriorating feed conditions and forest fires; tapirs in Thailand in the dry season from deciduous migrate to evergreen forests. Increasingly, they began to be found on the fringes, clearings and plantations.
Breeding
Mating tapirs takes place all year. Pregnancy lasts about 400 days, mostly 1 baby is born, but twins also occur. At the same time, in American animals, babies are distinguished by the presence of white spots and longitudinal stripes on dark brown skin. At the age of 6 months, this pattern begins to disappear, in the year, the color becomes finally adult - plain. Tapirs live for about 30 years.
It should be clarified that in America there are 3 species of this genus, and in Asia there is only one. The number of tapirs everywhere has been greatly reduced due to clearing forests for land and hunting animals. All species are protected and, apart from the plain, are in the Red Book.
Plain tapir
It is a brownish-black look with white spots located on the chest, neck and throat. This species inhabits the forests of South America. Plain tapirs are mostly nocturnal. In the daytime, they retire into the undergrowth, but at night they go out in search of food. These animals can dive and swim well. In general, they are very cautious and timid, in case of the slightest threat, they flee or try to hide in the water.
Plain tapirs, if necessary, defend themselves with the help of teeth, biting the attacker. If two individuals meet, then their behavior relative to each other, as a rule, is aggressive. They urinate their areas, and for communication with relatives, various piercing sounds resembling a whistle are used. They feed only on plants, preferring their softest parts. In addition to leaves, they consume buds, algae, fruits and branches. The enemies of the tapirs are crocodiles, jaguars and cougars.
Mountain tapir
This is the smallest representative of the genus. Mountain tapir is an animal found in the forests of Colombia and Ecuador. It differs from a plain one with a blackish thick coat and lack of mane. This species in the years 1824-1827. during the studies of the Colombian Andes, French scientists Jean Baptiste Bussingo and Desiree Roulin described. They noted that this strange animal has long hair, like a bear.
Mountain tapirs are solitary, active at night, which are removed during the day in the thickets of forests. They are wonderful climbers who can also dive and swim, and besides, they dig into the mud with great pleasure. But it should be noted that these are very timid animals, in case of a threat they often hide under water. These tapirs are also herbivores. They feed on branches, leaves, and the rest of the plants.
Black tapir
Black tapir can be seen in the southeastern part of Asia, more precisely, in Thailand, in the southeastern region of Burma, on the Malacca Peninsula, in addition, on neighboring islands. Its front part of the body, as well as its hind legs are brownish-black in color, and the middle (from the shoulders to the base of the tail) is creamy white, as if covered with shabraki (blanket). This is a vivid example of the so-called patronizing "dissecting" color, which perfectly masks the animal on moonlit nights in the jungle, when the whole plant world is a black and white solid pattern.
Black tapir also dives and swims perfectly, but it even mates in the water, and when immersed completely, it can wander along the bottom of the lakes. It constantly falls out in the mud, thereby getting rid of parasitic insects and ticks.
Central American Tapir
This is a large beast of a blackish-brown plain color. It occurs in the territory from Mexico to Panama. It is very similar in appearance to its relatives from South America, although it differs from them in structural details.
At the Central American tapir, the height at the withers reaches 120 cm, and weight - 300 kg, body length - 200 cm. With such indicators, he is considered not only the largest tapir of the New World, he is also the largest wild mammal in the tropics of America. Outwardly, it looks like a plain tapir, while, in addition to larger sizes, it has a shorter mane at the back of the head.